Council investigating Boardmasters crowd surges

The five day festival had an increased capacity of 58,000 this year

Cornwall Council has launched a public protection investigation after crowd surges at a music festival left a number of people with injuries.

The organisers of the Boardmasters festival in Newquay said seven people were reported to have been taken to hospital following the incident on Friday night.

A spokesperson for the local authority said its public protection service was investigating the incident and the council "cannot comment further while this investigation is ongoing".

The organisers of the festival said "experienced pit management and security teams" had been "in place across the festival".

The festival has a number of stages above Watergate Bay

Crowd surges happened at The Point stage, with reports of music fans falling to the ground and being trampled as equipment collapsed.

They happened ahead of a performance by DJ Sammy Virji scheduled for 20:30 BST on Friday, with the set being cancelled as a result.

A teenage girl who suffered soft tissue damage to her foot in a crowd surge said she was given a bottle of water by medics and told to return to her tent because they were unable to help.

Elana, 17, from Rugby, Warwickshire, said staff were unable to give her paracetamol or an ice pack for her injury because "they ran out of everything".

Elana suffered soft tissue damage to her foot and will be on crutches for about two weeks

Describing the crowd surge, Elana said she "didn't know what was happening" and had "a panic attack on the floor" as she waited for help.

She said she waited for about an hour for help to arrive before her friends carried her to the tent.

Elana, who will be on crutches for about two weeks, said staff told her to return to the medical tent the next morning.

"They gave me a bottle of water but that was it," she said.

"They wouldn't give me any paracetamol, ice packs - they ran out of everything."

'We were distraught'

Elana's parents drove about five hours overnight to collect her before taking her to an A&E department in Rugby.

Her mother, Lisa, 44, said: "We were just distraught.

"It's your worst kind of nightmare because you feel so helpless as you're so far away."

Lisa said the festival "obviously wasn't well organised".

"I don't want any parent going through what I went through that night," she said.

"Driving down to Newquay knowing my daughter hadn't received the medical attention she deserved and she needed.

"There wasn't enough medical attention and medical supplies for the one incident they had."

Police arrests

Devon and Cornwall Police said it was notified of a "crowd collapse" at the festival which "left a small number of attendees injured", adding none of the injuries were considered to be serious.

The force said officers made 11 arrests at the event for drugs offences, sexual offences and assault.

It said three people had been charged for drugs offences, four released on bail, two cautioned and two released with no further police action.

Organisers of Boardmasters said the festival had "robust medical and welfare provision including highly experienced and trained medical, welfare and safeguarding staff".

"These teams are available in the main arena and campsites 24 hours a day, for anything our audience might need," they said.